Hero
by xxkoffeexx
Summary: Morning rituals and gang fights. Lambo x I-pin.


**Hero**

_by xxkoffeexx_

Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! whatsoever.

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:X:X:X:

Over the years they grew up together, squabbling every morning over who got the biggest plate, racing each other to school, competing during class, and then the final race to see who reached home first and got control of the television. That was back in their early days at elementary school, back when they lived in the Sawada household.

Of course, they didn't always stay there in Japan. There were times when Lambo would have to go back to Italy because the Bovino family called him, or because the Vongola Guardians were gathering for some reason, or because he just felt like it. The latter happened more often as he grew older, but it didn't happen too often. And there were times when I-pin would suddenly go back China for some business or other, and her master would give her a mission that would take days, even weeks, to finish. And because she still considered herself an assassin in those early days, she would disappear randomly without notice, and then suddenly come back from, say, Africa or Spain.

But one day, their disappearances and sporadic trips overseas stopped. Lambo was being stationed in Japan from now on, or I-pin quit being an assassin, or something like that. They decided to devote their time to being students, instead of the dangerous life of mafia.

(Of course, that last part was a complete lie because one can never be completely done with the mafia. At least, not once you're in it. Still, they were young, and one hoped that these children could be prolonged from that inevitable path just a little longer.)

And as they frequented the Sawada household once more, a new ritual was born, one that Lambo would not be forgetting anytime soon or later. For now it served as a reminder of their temporary peaceful lives.

"Lambo, pay attention!"

A swift leg heading straight for his face made him snap out of his morning daydream, and he barely dodged. It sped over his un-brushed hair, and he protested, "I-pin, it's too early to be doing this! I haven't even used the toilet yet—whoa!" He caught a sharp punch before it landed on his stomach and held it firmly as he pleaded, "Listen to me I-pin. We should do training in the afternoon instead of before breakfast. I'm sleepy and hungry and I can barely _stand_ nevertheless fight!"

Her response was a sweeping leg that knocked him off his feet, making him land hard on the cold, dewy lawn of the Sawada house's backyard. All he could see was the light blue sky, and for a moment he thought he was back in Italy, where he would lay down on the roof and see skies like this. Then I-pin's face appeared in his vision, and those thoughts disappeared quickly.

Her eyes were wide with bemusement and minor reproach, as was her gentle voice, "Lambo, you complain every morning. You'd still complain even if we trained in the afternoon." Her tone became slightly exasperated as she added, "And you always eat before we train, so hunger is not an excuse."

"Which is why we should do it in the evening," he grunted, propping himself on his elbows. "Or just not do it at all."

She sighed, "You know we can't do that, Lambo. We have our duties, remember?" Then she offered him a hand and a smile. "Come on, let's eat breakfast!"

"You forgot I already ate, remember?" He took her hand and she pulled him up to his feet.

"Then eat your second breakfast. You need the energy to keep you awake during class."

Together they entered the house bickering and laughing, just like every morning.

:x:x:x:

I-pin had developed a streak of justice during her years training under her master. Ever since she was little she couldn't stand seeing something unjust happening in her presence, and she always acted on that feeling. She wouldn't just stand there and do nothing when she knew somebody was in trouble. She was the type of person to go flying to someone's aid no matter what.

Lambo was not that type of person. In fact, far from it. He wouldn't hesitate to say it either; that he would do the exact opposite of I-pin. And he didn't feel very guilty about it. Why should he be when it was a mere statement of fact?

So when, on their way home from school, they spotted a boy their age getting beat up by a gang, I-pin immediately flew over to deliver truth and justice on the delinquents (and a bit of mad butt-kicking, in Lambo's opinion). Lambo did his part by staying right where he was and searching for a safe place to watch the show. He figured he might not even need to search, since by the time he found a spot the butt-kicking would be over. I-pin was more than a match for any common gang unfortunate enough to be within five feet of her radius.

"Tell me when you're done," he called to her, yawning as he did.

"Okay!" she called back.

But this time the gang was clever. They used the boy they were ganging up on as a shield. I-pin was suddenly forced to stop, clearly unable to fight without hurting him too. Seeing her hesitation, the gang quickly grabbed her, gleeful and violent at the light of their advantage. The boy, who thought he was going to be saved, looked terrified for both the Chinese girl and himself.

He began shouting desperately, "Help! Help us! We're being attacked! Help!" The other members quickly shut him up, but somebody heard.

Actually, somebody had been running towards them as soon as it became obvious that I-pin was not going to deliver retribution anytime soon. That somebody was charging full-on at the gang, his gaze locked on the guys holding her arms.

"Take your hands off her," his voice rang deep and threatening as he kept going, not slowing down, "and nobody will get hurt."

"Holy… he ain't stoppin'!"

"What the—"

"Hold it!"

The Guardian of Lightning lowered his head, electricity gathering on the horns he placed on either side of his head, alarming the ignorant gang members. "I warned you," he remarked. "Now you'll regret—"

"Shut up!" A delinquent threw a hasty punch, connecting with the Lightning Guardian's chin. Lambo flew back comically and thumped onto the ground, defeated after just one attack.

"Lambo!"

"That was fast."

The one who hit him, probably the leader, quickly sneered at his unexpected victory. "Hah! What a moron. Look at him, he's wearing horns! How sissy!" He began kicking the prone Guardian's form, taunting, "Yeah, what'd you think you could do, loser? You can't save anybody for—"

He squeaked, actually _squeaked_, when a hand suddenly grabbed the leg that was kicking. Lambo lifted his head and smirked at the shocked gang.

"Compared to I-pin's punches… yours was nothing." He shot up to his feet, surprising them even more, and grabbed the leader's shirt. "What are you, a sissy moron who wants to be called the loser boss of a kitty gang?"

"Wha—?" The loser boss was knocked unconscious before he could process the insult. Lambo turned to the rest of the gang, who all backed away in fright. Their leader was down. Then, remembering they still had their hostages, all of them regained their fangs and bared them at the single Guardian.

I-pin shouted, "Lambo! Our formation!"

He knew what she was talking about. It was their formation for when they trained every morning. Still, he was in no hurry as the gang members began rushing towards him all at once, and he remarked to the out cold leader, "By the way, these sissy horns could fry more than fifty of you, even in nice weather." He stepped over the leader's unhearing body as he met the oncoming assault.

"I'm only wearing them because the girls love 'em."

And with that he fought.

:x:x:x:

The sky was still the same shade of blue as it had been in the morning, only this time Lambo knew that I-pin was staring at it with him. There was an odd sense of peace in that knowledge, even as the defeated gang members groaned and cursed around them.

"See? All that training really did pay off. You didn't even use your Ring abilities, Lambo."

He made a noncommittal sound.

"You were kind of cool," commented I-pin. She added thoughtfully, "Like a hero."

He stared at the sky as a smile spread on his lips.

There was a sound, and then hurried footsteps as the boy stumbled over to them. He approached I-pin with a tone of admiration that didn't escape Lambo.

"Thank you so much! You're really amazing, you know that?" He was helping the Chinese girl up to her feet, and once she was standing he didn't release her. Now that he was no longer in danger, he switched on his usual boy charms and smiled earnestly at the pretty but unaware girl. "I'm really glad I got to meet you. Do you mind if we go out for some drinks? I want to thank you."

I-pin blinked at his proposal. "Ah, um, I'm not sure…"

"Come on, it's my treat! I know this café that's really close to here."

"Oh, but…" The boy was placing his hands on her shoulders, steering her firmly even though she was uncomfortable.

"It's over this way, uh… I didn't catch your name…?"

"I, um—"

Suddenly, the boy felt an ominous presence looming over them, and he glanced over his shoulder. What he saw made him freeze in fear.

The Lightning Guardian was on his feet and his horns crackled dangerously, reminding the boy just who had _really_ saved him from the gang. Lambo's calm demeanor belayed the threatening aura radiating from his entire body, and his gaze was sharp and deadly.

"Don't touch her."

The boy blinked hard. "Eh—huh?"

"I said, go away." And just to emphasize what he meant, Lambo stepped forward. The boy gulped and staggered from I-pin. He got the message, loud and clear. Without looking back, he turned and hightailed it, away from the remaining gang members, away from the crazy horn guy who was obviously the cute chick's over-protective boyfriend.

I-pin was confused, not having seen Lambo's subtle threat. "Eh? I wonder what was wrong with him."

The horns stopped crackling and Lambo shrugged, his laidback attitude returning. "Who knows? Come on, let's go home." He was already walking.

She grinned and fell into step with him. "Hey, Lambo?"

"What?"

She smiled up at the sky, hands clasped. "I was thinking. Maybe we should train in the evenings?"

"Really?"

A resolute nod. "That way we can train in the morning _and_ evening. That's double the training per day!"

He sighed loudly.

END

:X:X:X:

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A/N: I honestly don't know why I added in that little history prologue thing. I don't think it really had anything to do with the whole story. Maybe because this is my first Lambo x I-pin fic…? Or I just think the whole childhood aspect of their relationship is so _cute_. Meh. Anyways, this fic was originally published in LiveJournal for **templated. **XD

Hm. Hibari and I-pin really have split up, haven't they? XD Just kidding. I'm really only experimenting different pairings... except for YamaxHaru, of course.

Thanks for reading!

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